Apparatus for treating skins, fabric, tobacco, and the like



I. U. FLANAGAN. APPARATUS Foa TBEAUNG sKlNs FABRIC, TOBACCO, AND THE LIKE.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 2l. I9I4.

Patented .1311.13, 1920.

mvEmon wnuEssEs ATTORNEY UNITED sTATEs PATENT oEEIcE.v

JAMES U. FLANAGAN, OF WILMINGTON, DELAWARE, ASSIGNOR F THREE-FOURTHS TO F. F. SLOCOMB & CO., INCORPORATED, OF WILMINGTON, DELAWARE, A CORPORATION OF DELAWARE.

Specification o1' Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 13, 1920.

Application filed May 21, 1914. Serial No. 839,951.

To all 'whom z't may concern.'

Be it known that I, JAMES U. FLANA- f GAN, a citizen of the United States, residing in the city of Wilmington, county of New Castle, State of Delaware, have invented a new and usefull Apparatus for Treating Skins, Fabric, Tobacco, and the like, of which the following is a specification.

My invention in its broad aspects consists of an improved method of and apparatus for treating skins, fabric, tobacco or the like, in a manner whereby the material Yto be dried is subjectedto the action of a drying agent, comprising air at a' low temperature, either in motion or stationary, which is applied directly or indirectly to the material to be dried.

In one embodiment of my invention, as herein `described,I utilize the same for treating lacquered or otherwise various coated sklns, whereby such skins, after the applica'- tion of the lacquer or similar glazed coating thereto, can be subjected to air at a low temperature or to cold blasts of air which dryand harden the coating.

In its broad aspects, my invention is not limited in its -use to skins treated as hereinabove described, but it is equally applicable to skins after the same have been oiled 0H, staked, seasoned or otherwise treated.-

My invention further consists of an improved method of andapparatus for treating lacquered or otherwise glaze-coated skins, in which such skins after the application of the lacquer or similar glazed coating, can be subjected to cold blasts of air which dry and harden the coating. A

It further consists of improved means for cooling the air-blast to which the treated skins are exposed to dry and harden the coating. l

It further consists of improved means for supporting the skins to be treated.

It further consists of other novel features of construction, all as will be hereinafter fully set forth.

The annexed drawing and the following description set forth in detail one mechanical form embodying the invention, such detail construction being but one of various mechanical forms in which the principle of the invention may be used.

Figure 1 represents a longitudinal section of an apparatus embodying my invention.

y Fig. 2 represents a horizontal section of such apparatus.

SimilarV numerals of reference indicate corresponding parts inthe figures.

Referring to the drawings, the reference numeral l indicates an inclosure or casing, consisting of a bottom, 2, top, 3, sides, 4, an end, 5, and doors, G, hinged to the edges of the sides to close the opposite end. All of these parts of the casing f are preferably double and suitably lined or packed with non-heat-conducting material. A blower, 7,

is connected to deliver a blast of air into a Haring opening, 18, in the end of the casing, and one or more suction-blowers, 8, are connected at the opposite end of the casing. A coil or manifold, 9, is supported at the end of the casing opposite to the discharge of the same, and` has a pipe-connection, 10, with a cooling device, such as the brinepump of an ice-machine or a similar source of cold. A truck, 11, having wheels, 12, can

travel and rests upon rails, 13, upon the bottom of the casing, and trays, 14, having flanged sides, 15, are adapted to be stacked upon said truck so as to have Vlongitudinal spaces between them formed by the flanges resting upon each other, and said trays have clamps, 16, which can stretch and hold skins, 17, in such space.

In practice, the skins which have been coated with lacquer orv whatever glazing composition is employed, or treated with other composition, are stretched in the trays by the clamps, and the trays are piled upony the truck with the edges of the flanges of one layer of trays resting upon the edges of the flanges of the trays in the layer below, and with their open ends meeting to form longitudinal narrow passages between the trays and through the stack. When a loaded truck is placed in the casing and the latter is closed, the blast is started by the blower, the air will spread inside of the cooling chamber formed with the flaring opening in the end of the casing, and the current of air comes in contact with the cooling coil and the branches of the same and becomes cooled to a low temperature, whereupon it passes through the narrow passages between the trays, passing over the coated sides of the skins stretched in the trays. The cold blast will chill anddry and harden the varnish,

japan, lacquer or Whatever coating upon the skins, and being forced into the easing at one end and drawn out by the suction blowers at the other end, such cold blast will quickly dry. the skins, vdispensing with the usual slow process of drying the skins out of doors, wherein a llarge amount of, surface space is required, which is useless when no skins are dried, and which is both slow and A uncertain, owing to weather-conditions.

The glazing composition requires cold air to remove its tackiness and attempts to ydry skins covered with lacquer or similar .glazing composition. by exposing such coated skins to heat has resulted in drying the skins hard and brittle and killing all the life in the' same, and as soon as the skins have been removed from the dry heat, they again become tacky. The only method hereto successful has been lplacing the skins stretched in; frames in the outer air. Such process requires large outdoor area which,A

when no drying is taking place, is` substantially idle, thus makingy the process expen.

sive, and a considerable laborfforce is, required to carry and place `and again remove the frames holding the skins. Atmospheric conditions, such as rain and snow, interfere by preventing the skins being placedout of i doors, andthe ,ground space .for drying the tether impurities whichwill otherwise 1 to the tacky surfaces of-the skins. l

skins must be located where the atmosphere is comparatively free from soot, dust or stick By the use of my apparatusand method,

.ground-space in the open air is not required,

y. tlied and the drying may be continually and 4of time.

The advantages of my process of effecting the drying operation bysmeans of air at a low temperature or cold blasts of air, arev the following v y Warm air contains, ordinarily speaking, a

4 much greater percentage of moisture than air which has been refrigerated. Owing to this fact, the warm air is manifestly incapable of absorbing from any material to be dried, the amount of moisture which can readily be taken up by refrigerated air or'air at a low.

temperature. Another advantage of therefrigerated air is the factthat warm air has v a tendency to contract and harden the substances dried, and this would not be the case with refrigerated air, but, on the contrary,

expeditiously carried out with great saving therewould be a tendency to expand and soften the dried substances, .andin the case of leather, it would plump the samemoi'e or less, which is a matter of extreme importance, leather manufacturers being extremely desirous of making their leather as plumpand full as it is possible to do, owing tothe fact that vthere is av much readier sale for it Vat an advanced price.

It isl also possibleA greatly to reduce the time required in drying by the use of refrigerated air, which effects a considerable economy.

Other modes of applying the principle of my invention may be employedv for the mode herein explained. Change may therefore be made as regards the mechanism thus disclosed, provided the principles of construction set forth respectively in the following claims are employed.

Having thus described .my invention, what I claim-vas new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is Y l. An apparatus for treating glaze-coated skins, comprising an inclosure, means at one 'endof said inclosure for introducing a blast, transportation means adapted to enter said inclosure, and trays supported upon said l transportation means and having spaces between them,' eachof said trays carrying a skinv stretched'thereon. t i

2. An apparatus for treating glaze-coated skins, comprising an inclosure, means at one end of said inclosure for introducing a blast, means for cooling said blast, transportation means adapted to enter said inclosure,' and trays supported upon said transportationl means andhaving spaces between them, each of said trays' carryingl a skin stretched thereon. 1

3. vAn apparatus for treating glaze-coated skins, comprising an inclosure, means at one end of such inclosure for introducing a blast,

a truck adapted to enter such inclosure, and

trays having flanges upon their side edges and means' tfor supporting the skins, said trays being adapted to be stacked upon the truck with 'their flanges resting. upon onev another to form longitudinal narrow: passages between them.

4. An apparatus for treatingglaze-coated skins', comprising an inclosure, means at one end of such inclosure for introducin a blast, means for cooling suchV blast, a'truc adapted to enter such inclosure,- and trays having flanges upon their side edges and means for supporting the skins, s aid ltraysbeing adapted to be stacked uponthe truck with their v flanges resting upon one another to .form

longitudinal narrow passages.'betweenfthem.

' 5. `An .apparatus for treating glaze-'coated skins, comprising'an inclosure, meansl at one end of such inclosurefor introducing a blast,4

, means for cooling such blast, suction means at -the opposite end of such inclosure for removing air fromvthe same, a truck adapted to enter such inelosure, and trays having flanges upon their side edges and means for supporting the skins, said trays being adapted to be stacked upon the truck with their flanges resting upon one another to form longitudinal narrow passages between them.

JAMES U. F LANAGAN.

-I Witnesses: 1

WM. SECHER, C. D. MCVAY. 

